Hey there, and welcome back to Animal Farm: The Novelization. Well, we've reached the end of the story. I hope you had some fun reading this. I know I had some fun while writing this.

Finishing date: November 11, 2021 (Happy Veteran's Day to all those who served in the military.)

Enjoy, and see you next time!


Epilogue

Sam took a deep breath and paused his story for a bit. The cool autumn air of West Virginia filled his lungs and made him sigh with ease. It had taken him several days to tell the entire story, and just two weeks away from now, it would be Thanksgiving.

When Sam had finally finished the story, the animals were gazing around at each other in awe. They had gasped at the scary parts like when Napoleon had ordered lots of animals to be killed, cried at the sad parts like Boxer's death, and cheered at the parts they liked best like the Battle of the Cowshed.

"That's a lot to take in, Sam," said the mule who had asked for the story. "Such despair and hope!"

The old dog nodded. "Oh yes, it's a lot to take in," he agreed. "In fact, I'm glad that you lot asked me to tell you that story. It brings back both good and bad memories."

"What about the other animals?" asked the young Leghorn rooster. "What became of them?"

"Let me see here..." Sam sat up and scratched at an ear with his hind paw. "Benjamin and Clover were able to die peacefully, knowing that not only Boxer was avenged but the other animals were truly free this time. Until the day he died, Benjamin would wander from field to field, neither staying with the humans nor staying away from them for long. Jessie stayed with what remained of her puppies and Bluebell's puppies at Mollie's sanctuary, becoming a grandmother before dying as well."

The piglet from earlier shivered. "I'm proud of my fellow pig," he said, "but Napoleon and his pigs make me sick! I hope they paid for all that."

"Oh, Napoleon certainly did," said Sam. "Maybe Snowball paid for it too, though he did help us in the end. As for the rest of Animal Farm's pigs, Squealer and those who escaped were soon snatched up by the butchers. They ended up on the chopping block, just as Old Major warned them years ago."

"And did those dogs really eat Napoleon?" asked the piglet.

Sam nodded again. "Yep. They had flung his bones into a ditch. He did say that animals who betrayed Animal Farm would never be honored or be buried in the orchard where Old Major was buried." Sam couldn't help but snort. "And he was the biggest traitor of all, no matter how he tried to pass it off to Snowball."

Then the colt had a question that some animals had been asking. "Uncle Sam," he asked, "how do you know all that happened after you left England?"

"From what I understand, the pigeons have seagull friends in England," explained Sam. "They'd migrate from across the ocean and deliver news to America's seagulls, who pass it on to birds flying in from Virginia."

Now the animals nodded and understood. They decided to be content with the answer.

"Thanks for the story, Uncle Sam," said the Leghorn rooster. "But what's the lesson?"

"Lesson?" Sam repeated with a blink.

"Yeah, what he said," added the piglet. "My mom says that for lots of stories, there are lessons too."

Sam smiled. "Your mother must be a good teacher then," he said before nibbling at an itch thoughtfully. "Let's see...I did say that not all humans are evil and that not all animals were friends. That, and Animalism isn't the cure for a lot of situations."

"Like four legs and two legs are both good?" asked the piglet. "Or they can be both bad?"

"Something like that," said Sam. "People and animals will always be gray, having a mix of both good or bad in them. But what shouldn't be gray is the decision to do what is good and right. You understand that?"

The animals nodded. They hadn't had the same experiences that Animal Farm had had, neither knowing cruelty nor starvation. But now they had the gist of what had happened, and if something similar to what happened at Animal Farm would happen here, they would need to get ready.

"We're gonna go play," said the colt with the black kitten on his back. "Thanks for the story, Uncle Sam."

Sam smiled. "It's no problem. As I said, it was good to relive the memories and let them out."

"Come on, guys!" called the piglet, squealing to get his friends' attention. "Let's play Animal Farm! I'll be Napoleon."

"If you're going to be Napoleon, then I wanna be Boxer!" exclaimed the colt. "I'll get my revenge on you, Napoleon!"

"And I'll be Snowball," added the Leghorn rooster.

The other young animals gave him an odd look. "But you're a rooster, and Snowball's a pig," the colt said.

The rooster shrugged. "I don't mind that," he defended himself. "Now let's get going! I want to build my windmill before Napoleon ruins it!"

The piglet chuckled and raced away, with the colt and the Leghorn rooster on his heels. As for the adult animals, they dispersed to do whatever they usually did near the end of the day.

Sam sighed and watched them go, his head on his paws. While he lay there on the front porch, he watched the younger animals at play, as he had done days ago. He was fourteen years old now; it had been six years since he had returned to the United States of America. His eyes were starting to blank out from near blindness, his right shoulder never fully healed, and his joints were often creaking and cracking. But being back in America and living his own life - in the comfort of caring human beings - was a rich life for him indeed.

Then he wondered what would happen on the day he would die. He would race across the Rainbow Bridge and end up in Paradise, where all animals were truly equal and free at last, where there was no strife or misery. Even humans - the more powerful beings - would happily frolic with the animals there, as if they were really an animal. Perhaps there could be a Sugarcandy Mountain as Moses the raven once preached about, a mountain where it was Sunday seven days a week, with clover in bloom all season and special treats growing on the hedges and lump sugar and linseed cakes. He would even get to see old friends there - like Jessie, Benjamin, Clover, Muriel, Bluebell, and Boxer - as well as meet new friends.

But that day would come one day. Until that day would come, he would spend his last days living for the present as well as remembering the past. He would make sure that both humans and animals would remember the mistakes of Animal Farm and learn from them, to avoid repeating them.

With a yawn and a smile, Sam rested his head on his paws and fell asleep. All was well in the world.

The End